Death Stranding is joining the neverending list of Sony and Sony-funded games getting a movie adaptation, but it won’t be a retread of Sam Porter Bridges’ story from the original game.
The movie will be part of a partnership between original developer Kojima Productions and Barbarian Executive Producer Alex Lebovici’s Hammerstone Studios. Right now, it’s unclear just what the story will entail, but it will introduce “new elements and characters” within the universe. That doesn’t mean characters like Sam or Fragile won’t show up, but it won’t be a simple retelling of what’s come before.
“We are thrilled and honored to have the opportunity to partner with brilliant and iconic Hideo Kojima on his first film adaptation,” Lebovici says in a press release. “Unlike other big budget tentpole video game adaptations, this will be something far more intimate and grounded. Our goal is to redefine what a video game adaptation could be when you have creative and artistic freedom. This film will be an authentic ‘Hideo Kojima” production.’”
Calling Death Stranding “more intimate and grounded” than other video game adaptations may or may not apply to some projects like the Resident Evil film series, but it does seem like these adaptations are making that shift across the board. Things like the upcoming The Last of Us series set to premiere on HBO next month comes to mind as a recent example of a live-action adaptation that manages to stay fairly grounded. We’ll see what Lebovici thinks this Death Stranding adaptation has over projects along those lines when it comes to fruition.
News of this comes just a week after a sequel to Death Stranding (with a working title of Death Stranding 2) was announced at The Game Awards. The trailer showed an older version of Sam Porter Bridges with Norman Reedus reprising his role. Other returning cast members include Léa Seydoux as Fragile and Troy Baker as Higgs. Elle Fanning and Shioli Kutsuna are also confirmed as newcomers for the sequel, so the cast will be expanding a bit.
The original Death Stranding launched as a PlayStation 4 exclusive back in 2019, and was ported to PC the following year. A Director’s Cut version was released on PlayStation 5 in 2021, though that’s a questionable label considering nothing was really cut.
For more on Death Stranding and the franchise it has spawned, check out Kotaku’s review.